Knitting needle



July 1o, 192s.

F. M. FRAZIER KNITTING NEEDLE 3.- Sheets-Sheet l Filed Jan. 26, 1927 @www July 10 1928. l,67,947

F. m, FRAZIELR KNITTING NEEDLE meg Jan. 2e. 1927 s sheets-sheet 2 0 a 25 M 2 2 vf? l Z f f/w /4 7 July 10, 1928. 1,676,947

F. M. FRAzlER KNI'ITING NEEDLE Filed Jan. 26, 1927 3 Sheets-Shea?, 5

FM 6 if Patented July 10, 192.8.

PATENT OFFICE.

FRANKLIN m. Fanzine, or rLAoEnvTLLE, c onoaano.

KNITTING NEEDLE.

Application led January 26, 1927. Serial No. 163,582.

My invention relates to' improvementsin knitting needles and the use thereon' and has for one object to provide a conventional latch needle in connection 'with a movable jacket adapted to coact withy said latchl needle in the manner hereinafter described.

Another object of my invention is to provide a means on said jacket adapted to insure the opening of the latch ofsaid latch needle thereby preventing the dropping of stitches which result when thelatch closes the hook of the latch needle at the time when the yarn is being fed thereto.

'Another object is to provide, by the coaction of said jacket with said latch needle,

means for dropping stitches from one knitting needleto another, means being provided l relation, means on said jackets for this purpose.

Another object is to providesuch knitting needles adapted to coact in pairs, the needles ofeach of said pairs being in opposed spaced being provided on. the jackets whereby said coaction may take place.

With the above and other objects in view my invention consists in the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and claimed, and more particularly illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of sufficient of a knitting machine to illustrate my present invention, the knitting needles beingshown in tions.

Figure 2 is a view of the knitting needles as shown in Figure 1, showing the knitting needles in the first operation 'of knitting, to

' receive the yarn.

Figure 3 is a view similar to-Figure 2, but showing the second operation, of drawing the yarn thru the previous stitch. i

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 2, but

y showing the third operation, wherein the new loop is formed.

. Figure 5 is a fra entary view of a portion of Figure 2, siowing the latch being opened to receive the yarn.

Figure 6 is a view similar to Figure 2, but showing the knitting vneedles in the first operation of dropping a stitch.

Figure 7 is a view similar to Figure 6, showing the second `'operation of dropping a stitch.

Figure 8 is a` view similar to Figure 5,

'line 10-10 of Figure 11.

their idling knitting posi.'

showing the knitting needle retracted into the straight bed. l,

Figure 9 is an end view of Figure 13. l Figure 10 is a sectional view along the Figure 11 is a plan view of Figure 1,3. Figure 12 is a fragmentary plan view of a portion of Figure 7, showing the relation of the pair of coacting needles. f Figure 13 is a fragmentary view of one of the knitting needles of Figure 1, showin the latch needle retracted into the jacket and the latch closed. 1

Figure 14 is a plan view of the knitting neede removedfromfthe straight-bed.` v

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, I show a latch needle A, ycoacting with a .jacket B; the numeral 10 refers to a vstraight bed or needle carrying member of a `knitting machine, and 11 represents a part of a cam plate or other cam member of the machine. Two such straight beds with their cam plates areshown in opposed relation, the straight beds being disposed right angularly with each other.

The straight beds have lands 12" forming jacket grooves 12, and each jacket B comprises a body portion 13 adapted to slidably engage said jacket grooves, a butt 14 adapted' to be acted upon by al projecting cam-15 and a retracting cam 16 on the cam plate 11,' whereby the longitudinal' reciprocation of the jacket in its respective groove is eiected.

Each'jacket body ortion 13 has alatch needle groove 17 an each latch needle A comprises a hooked member-18 ada ted to slidably engage said needle groove, a` utt 19 positioned medially said hooked member, and a butt 20 adapted to be acted upon by a projecting cam 21 and a retracting cam 22 nal reciprocation of the'y latch needle in the jacketl is eiected. Said hooked member 18 has a hook 23 at its outer end and a latch 24 adapted to coact with the hook in the conventional manner.v

The jacket body portion 13 has a cover 25 provided with a slot 26 adapted to have the .butt 19 slidably engaged therein, for the purpose of preventing the rotation of the latch needle A in the jacket The saidv body portion 13 is` formed at its outer end with a nose comprising upper" and lowerconverging faces, the intersection of the upof the other needle.

per face 27 with the lower face 28 coinciding with' the bottom of the latch needle groove 17. In the embodiment illustrated the upper face 27 is sloping, and the lower face 28 is vertical and has a vertically extending groove 31 for the purpose of permitting the coaction ot' opposing pairs of knitting needles as hereinafter described.' A portion of the needle groove 17 is closed over to provide a guide 29 adapted to slidably engage the inner end of said hooked member 18.

In the position shown in Figure 2, the jackets B are flush with the straight bed 10, and the latch needles A are projected'oub wardly the jackets B to receive the yarn 31 from the yarn i'eeder (not shown). The latches 24 are open. It is intended that the needles shall be so positioned in the knitting machine that the needles A, A', and their jackets B, B will be disposed in opposing paired relation, but so as to permit the hook 23 of one needle to project past the hook 23 For the purpose of illustration the previous stitch is shown on the needles transversely the straight beds, but it is understood that in normal operation the stitches will extend along and between the straight beds from one needle to the other.

In Figure?) the jackets B, B are shown retracted into the straight bed and the needles A, A are being drawn through the previous stitch. In Figure 4 the jackets B, B and the needles A, A together are retracted into the straight bed and the new loop drawn through the previous stitch. In Figure 5, the needles A, A are shown partly i projected outwardly the jackets B, B and the latch partly opened, and the jackets B, B are projected Hush with the straight bed. In the next operation the needles A, A are projected outwardly the jackets B, B', to the position shown in Figure l, from whence the sequence of operations described is repeated.

When it is desired to drop a stitch as at 32, the jacket B of the needle from which the stitch is to be dropped is projected outwardly the straight bed 10; at the same time the succeeding needle A is projected outwardly its jacket B so as to cause the said needle A to pass through the stitch 82 and to have its hook 23eiigage the groove 31 of the jacket B of the needle from which the stitch is to be dropped. Coincidently the needle A is projected outwardly its packet B so as to cause the stitch 32 to slip below the latch 24, as .shown in Figure 6. In Figure 7 is shown the latch needle A retracted into its jacket B whereby the stitch is disengaged from the hook 23 by the upper face 27 of the nose of the jacket B, whereupon the stitch may be di'epped onto the hooked member 18 oit the succeeding needle A. In

Figure 8 is shown the jacket B and the latch needle AV together retracted into the straight bed so as to be .flush therewith and well out of the way of the needles that are in operation.

. In Figure l2 is shown how the hook 23 of the latch needle Avis adapted to extend into engagement with the slot 31 of the jacket B of the opposing needle of the pair, so that the stitch 32 in slipping oi' the face 27 of the nose of the jacket Bis adapted to be engaged by the hooked member 18 of the latch needle A.

While I have shown and described my invention' in connection with a straight machine it is understood that may employ the saine in connection with other than straight machines, and that I may vary the method of constructing and assembling the elements of my invention in minor details, not departing from the spirit of my invention, so as best to construct a practical device for the purpose intended, as defined inv the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The combination of a knitting machine needle comprising a latch'needle having a pivoted latch, with a jacket mounted upon but having a movement independently of said latch needle, the outer end of said jacket being formed with converging upper and lower faces; the latch needle being adapted to project through the upper face;

a cover provided for said jacket; said cover having a slot extending in the directionof said movement; and a butt on the latch needle adapted to engage said slot; said jacket being formed with a bearing adapted to slidably engage said latch needle, said jacket and latch needle being susceptible of movement one in respect to the other in the direction of travel of the needle for transferring the yarn from the needle to the jacket.

2. The combination, in a knitting machine, of knitting needles adapted to coact in opposing pairs, each of said knitting needles comprising a latch needle having a hook adapted to coact with a pivoted latch, a jacket mounted upon but having a movement independently of said latch needle, said jacket having a slot extending in the direction of said movement, the end of said jacket corresponding to said hook being formed with converging upper and lower faces iiitersecting at the bottom of said slot, the latch needle being adapted to project through the upper of said faces; the `said jacket also having a groove formed in the lower of said faces whereby the hook of one needle of a pair may be adapted to coact with the jacket of the other needle.

The combination, in a knitting machine having opposing needle beds, oit needles slidably mounted in the beds and adapted lto coact in opposing pairs, jackets loosely mounted in one of the beds adapted to slidably,T engage the respective needles therein, each of the jackets having its outer end formed with upper and lower converging faces, means for retracting the needle of each jacket thereinto for casting the yarn from said needle tothe upper face of the jacket, and means for projecting the opposing needle into contact with-the lower face of said jacket for transferring the yarn from said jacket to said second mentioned needle, said means being operative prior to casting the yarn onto the jacket.

4. The combination in a knitting machine having opposing needle beds, of latch needles adapted to coact in opposing pairs, and a jacket mounted in one of the needle beds coacting with a needle in its respective bed to cast the yarn therefrom, and means for contacting said jacket with the hook of the opposing needle for reception of the yarn from said jacket, said Contact being effec-ted prior to casting the yarn onto the jacket.

ln testimony whereof I arix my signature.

' FRANKLIN M. FRAZIER. 

